Victor De Sabata
"La Notte di Platon"
"Gethsemani"
"Juventus"
London Philharmonic, Aldo Ceccato conducting
Hyperion CDA67209

Summary from the busy non-executive:  De Sabata wanders near every late
romantic black hole possible - Strauss, Ravel, Respighi, even Korngold -
and, alas, gets sucked into each.

The first piece on the CD is "La notte di Platon," (The Night of Plato).
De Sabata intends to evoke Plato's last feast before the philosopher
renounces desires of the flesh in order to foster the spirit - something
that can't be done without supreme self-denial.  (Good job Plato.) The
opening is captivating:  a languorous harp and celeste-limned string
theme opens up followed by orgy music that brings to mind the stylized
orientalism of Respighi.  Plato makes his stunning renouncement amidst
sarcastic cries from the orchestra and slowly the cream of Athenian society
departs, leaving Plato alone with his higher thoughts.  The music ends
serenely enough, but it's so similar to the coda of Strauss's Death and
Transfiguration that I find myself longing for the original.

De Sabata's second archaic civilization snapshot is that of "Gethsemani":
a portrait of Jesus resting in the garden after his tumultuous days in
Jerusalem.  Colors again remind one of the chant-inspired melodies of
Respighi and the color palette of Strauss and Ravel; and like "La notte,"
(though more subdued), the eventful, through-composed nature of the music
is similar to Korngold.  Why isn't the music working for me? De Sabata
certainly knows what he is doing, and his music is neither too naive nor
overly earnest.  While Respighi's tone-painting has an immediacy that
take us gladly and unabashedly over the top, De Sabata's has, IMHO, an
early-Hollywood sheen and politeness -Mary Magdalene played by Audrey
Hepburn rather than Drew Barrymore - that leaves me impressed but
ultimately stuck in the here and now.  And De Sabata's chromatic
underpinnings lack that special rapturous 'frisson' that fellow
underlings Szymanowski and Schreker capture routinely.

No, De Sabata isn't the Neglected One that I was hoping for.  So far,
Schreker, Szymanovsky, and Novak are the only ones that have come close;
and unlike De Sabata, their distinctive voices are strong enough to make
me forget their more eminent fathers.  And if you're looking for Respighi's
heir, there's nothing quite like...more Respighi!  Try the "rest of his
music" on Chandos - "Church Windows," "Belkis, Queen of Sheba," and "Poem
Autumnal" to name a few - these will deliver what you're looking for.

John Smyth
Sacramento, CA